Hame and trace connection.



No. 734,074. PATENTBD JULY 21. 1908;

W. G. LAWSON HAME D TRACE CONNECTION AP OATION FILED P B 14 1903 No.734,074. 7 UNITED STATES Patented July a1, 1903'.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM O.-LAWSON, QERURAL RETREAT, VIRGIN IA.

HAME AND TRAC E CONNECTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 734,074, dated July 21,1903.

Application filed February 14, 1903'. Serial No. 143,3 70. (1% model.) i

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM C. Lawson, a citizen of the United States,residing at Rural Retreat, in the county of Wythe and State of Virginia,have invented a new and useful Hame and Trace Connection, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to means for connecting the draft-trace of aharness to the hames thereof; and the object-is to provide means of thischaracter which is very strong and constitutes a secure fastening forthe trace, at the same time being made up of simple parts that can bemanufactured and put together at small cost.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings and is described in the following specification.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion. of ahame, showing the improved structure applied thereto. Fig. 2 is avertical sectional view through the same. Fig. 3 is a horizontalsectional view, and Fig. 4.- is a detail perspective view, of theretaining device.

Similar reference-numerals indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the draw- .ings.

The hame may be of any desired or wellknown construction and isdesignated by the reference-numeral 10, being shown in the presentinstance as having a suitable padding 11, secured to one side thereof.

The trace-hook is shown at 12 and com prises spaced hook members 13,connected at their rear ends and arranged to be passed through the linkof a trace-chain, as will be readily understood. The holding device forthis hook is in the form of a staple having spaced legs 14, connected bya cross-bar 15. This staple is preferably, though not necessarily,constructed of wire and the lugs are reduced, whereby shoulders 16 areformed. The trace-hook 12 is arranged to be engaged about thecross-bar15 of the holding-staple, and said bar is considerably greaterin length than the width of the hook, for the reason hereinaftersetforth. The bills of said hook are provided with enlarged portions 17.

In connection with the elements above described a retaining device isemployed which is in the form of a plate 18, bent about two sides of thehame and resting flat against the same. One end of the plate is securedby a bolt 19, passing through from edgeto edge of the hame, wh ile theother end of the plate is fastened by the holding-staple, the legs ofwhich pass through the corners of said plate,

the shoulders 16 thereof abutting against the same, as shown in Fig. 2.The plate thus extends within the staple, and the portion thereof soarranged is slit to provide a swinging spring-tongue 20, which is offsetand is located within the staple. A lug 21 is cut from the free end ofthe tongue and is bent outwardly, bridging the space between the tongueand the cross-bar 15, as illustrated in Fig. 3.

In use the trace-hook is engaged about the cross-bar, and as theenlarged portions 17 of the bills are passed beneath'the same the tonguewill first be depressed and afterward springing outwardly will maintainthe hook in operative engagement with the staple. Three verticaladjustments of this hook may be obtained. The lowermostis shown in Figs.1 and 2, the hook being located beneath the lug 21. A second positioncan'be obtained by placing the hook members 13 astride the 'lug, and theuppermost position is secured The of manufacturing the improvedconnector is a minimum one, though strengthand efficiency are not in anymanner sacrificed. 7

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction, operation, andmany advantages of the herein-described invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art without further description, and it will beunderstood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion, andminor detailsof construction may be resorted to without departing fromthe spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a structure of the class described, the combination with a hame,of a retaining device comprising a plate arranged against the hame andhaving intermediate spaced slits forming an outstanding tongue betweenthem that is spaced from the hame, and a staple extending over thetongue and having spaced legs that pass through the plate on oppositesides of said tongue, said legs constituting means for attaching theplate to the hame.

2. In a structure of the class described, the combination with a hamehaving angularlydisposed sides, of a retaining device comprising a plateresting against the sides and having an intermediate tongue that isspaced I from one side, means for securing the plate to the other side,and a staple attached to the first-mentioned side, said staple passingand a lug cut from the tongue and bent outwardly, said lug being locatedcontiguous to the staple.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM C. LAWSON.

Witnesses:

J OHN H. SIGGERS, FLORENCE E. WALTER.

